St. Jude Give Thanks Walk November 23, 2013 in a City Near You

Have you heard of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital? You might recall commercials featuring Danny Thomas or tear-jerking ones featuring Marlo Thomas and some of their young cancer patients. Maybe you've heard of this magical medical facility where parents do not pay bills? That alone makes me want to cry happy tears, especially when I flash back to time our insurance denied payment on a nearly $20,000 claim for an out-patient procedure on my younger son. They finally paid after several months of denials and as many anxiety attacks for me.

My friend Holly from Culture Mom had the opportunity to visit St. Jude and see their good works firsthand. I learned a lot through her. I'm going to snip a few facts about the hospital  from her blog:

• No family ever pays St. Jude for anything. Not one single dime. Nothing.
• Daily operating costs are 1.7 million, which is primarily covered by public contributions.
• In 1962 – the survival rate for acute lymphoblastic Leukemia- the most common form of childhood cancer- was 4%. Today.. .survival rate 94%.
• St. Jude is the FIRST AND ONLY National Cancer Institute designated Comprehensive Cancer Center devoted to children.
• The Flu vaccine was developed at St Jude.
• St Jude accepts patients up to 18 years of age and cares for them for a lifetime.
• Although there are only 78 beds in the hospital for in-patient care, they still see close to 7800 patients a year on an out-patient care basis.

You can read about Holly's visit, too.

I had the chance to connect with some of St. Jude's PR people at BlogHer 13 and wanted to pass along information they shared with me about their November 23, 2013 Give Thanks. Walk., a 5K walk with more than 89 locations nationwide (find one near you) and 31,000 participants. Together they raise millions of dollars to help families in difficult circumstances.

If you're looking for a way for your family to acknowledge the many things you have to be thankful for while  also helping those in need, consider getting involved in this walk.

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